


A Smoother Circle Back

by Procrastinating_Motivation



Category: Brave (2012), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Rise of the Guardians (2012), Tangled (2010)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Childhood Friends, Childhood Trauma, F/M, Jack Frost has daddy issues, Post-Break Up, friend groups that don't fight because I'm so tired of the drama pls, healthy friendships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-16 06:41:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29946006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Procrastinating_Motivation/pseuds/Procrastinating_Motivation
Summary: The summer after their second year of college, Jack still hasn't gotten over his break up with Rapunzel the year before. Hiccup and Merida have tried their best to get him through it, but it's hard when they don't even know half of what happened between them, more specifically Rapunzel's side of the story. Now Rapunzel is back from her year abroad in Germany, and though the friend group is still going strong, the unresolved tension from the year before is making it hard to move on for everyone. Is this really it for Jack and the group, or will he finally have to confront what he's been suppressing all this time. At this point he doesn't have much of a choice, but at the very least, he knows he'll have his friends to help him get through it.
Relationships: Hiccup Haddock III & Jack Frost (Guardians of Childhood) & Merida (Disney) & Rapunzel (Disney), Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Merida (Disney), Jack Frost (Guardians of Childhood)/Rapunzel (Disney)
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1 - Last Day of Finals

**Author's Note:**

> Oh wow, I haven't posted on here since middle school I think. Now I'm in my first year of college, wtf. Time sure does fly. I probably should have been studying for my TEAS exam, but the YouTube algorithm caught up to me and all those Jackunzel and Mericcup edits made me all nostalgic, so here you go. It's nice to see that there's still people out there contributing to this fandom. It was the first one I ever properly joined and will always have a little space in my heart. Hope you guys like it :)

Finally, finals were over. Jack had ran back to his dorm almost as fast as he ran through that final, the last traces of organic chemistry crammed into his mind the night before long since forgotten by the time he had returned. He was breathless by the time he reached the dorms, and when he made it back to his room, his usual pale skin was flushed pink. 

Flinging his backpack onto the couch, he opened the fridge that was conveniently next to the door and grabbed a container of ready made pasta he saved from the cafeteria a few days ago. He hadn’t eaten since midnight, and even then it was just a snack sized bag of pretzels with water. It was almost noon now, and apart from the adrenaline brought about by his run back, he was ready to crash.

“Back already?” Hiccup said from his spot on the couch, barely missed by the weaponized backpack.

“Yea, I already had a B in the class, and I only took it to get rid of one of my science GE’s anyway,” Jack said, popping the food into the microwave.

“Fair enough,” Hiccup mumbled, eyes glued to the TV. He had finished the last of his finals yesterday night and hadn’t moved from his spot on the couch since, determined to make up for the lost time he had to rank up in his video game.

“Shouldn’t you be packing up right now?” Jack asked, watching his food heat up.

“Already did, your room’s a mess though.”

Right, Jack remembered. Hiccup had brought in some spare moving boxes last week. Not for his clothes or anything, which he had calculated to all fit perfectly inside a large carry on, but for all his spare scrap metal and equipment from all the tinkering he spent on his mini inventions. How he managed to get anything done between his classes and excessive studying was beyond him, but whether it was school work, work outs, or inventions, Hiccup could find time to spare for just about anything.

“No! No, no, no, no, no - augh!”

Well, almost anything.

“Ha, still a little rusty there, huh,” Jack said with a smirk.

“Screw off,” Hiccup said, throwing the controller onto the coffee table. Jack laughed, picking it up with his free hand and settling on the couch.

“You were here the whole morning and still couldn’t get the combos right? You really have been in those books too long.”

“It’s a hard level, and besides,” Hiccup said, taking a piece of pasta out of the container, “not all of us have enough free time to game as much as you do.”

“It’s called time management, my guy. Future grad student like you should’ve gotten this down by now.”

Hiccup rolled his eyes. “Says the one who just blew off their chem final.”

Jack took a quick glance away from the screen to give him an odd look. “I told you I already had a B in that class.”

“You were barely gone an hour.”

“And I would’ve gotten back sooner if she didn’t make us do those stupid essay questions at the end. What’s your point?”

“My point is that that class is a pain in the ass, and you had a solid B by barely trying. Imagine if-,”

“Please, Hiccup, not this speech again,” Jack groaned, eyebrows furrowed as he made his way through the digital enemy territory.

They’ve had this discussion before. At first it was manageable, just a couple check ins here and there towards the end of their first year. But over the summer, Hiccup became more insistent about it, and was very invested in making sure Jack had some sort of drive in him. He was as great a roommate as he was annoying, and had they not been friends since 9th grade, Jack probably would’ve fought him ten times over by now for overstepping his place. Then again, this was probably karma for all those times he’d bother Hiccup for the math homework throughout high school.

As it stands, he appreciated how much Hiccup looked out for him. His adoptive family was great, and it’s a miracle how willing they were to put him through college, but even though Jack was older than him by a couple months, Hiccup was the closest thing to an older brother that he had.

Still, he didn’t always have to like it.

“It’s the end of our second year and you’re still undecided.”

“I told you, I’m picking business,” Jack said through clenched teeth, fingers flying over the buttons at an alarming speed.

“Bullshit, you haven’t even declared it yet.”

They sat there in silence for a moment, save for the sound of the control buttons and the grunts of opponents on the screen. Hiccup eyed him for a moment, waiting for a response, but Jack’s lips were pursed in tight. He sighed, claiming the abandoned pasta bowl for himself.

“All I’m saying is that you could do a lot more if you wanted to,” Hiccup said, biting into the meal.

“Thanks for the pep talk mom,” he responded flatly.

A quick huff from Hiccup, and they went back to sitting in silence. Him eating his pasta and Jack staring at the screen. A few more minutes, and the screen turned dark as the enemy struck the fatal blow. Jack groaned, setting aside the controller, and peeked a look over to Hiccup, before quickly looking away again.

He raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“I’m sorry,” Jack said, looking up at the ceiling. 

“Oh?”

“I know you’re just trying to help.”

That was the problem, Jack thought to himself. Though the exact reason why he didn’t want to go searching for just yet.

“No shit, dumbass,” Hiccup said, finishing the last of the remaining pasta.

“Shut up idiot,” Jack said, tackling him down with a throw pillow, “I mean it, I’m trying to be sentimental here.”

“Careful there, Frosty, that’s my job,” a sudden thick Scottish accent called out. The two look up from the couch to see Merida standing at the doorway with a grin, her usual wild curls for once tied back in a messy bun.

“Hey Mer-,”

“Fuck off, Red, I’m trying to have a moment with your man here.”

Merida laughed and grabbed a juice box from the fridge. “You’ve been trying since high school and I still haven’t seen much progress. I’m honestly disappointed, it’s not like I’m working that hard to keep him anyway.”

“Wow, I feel so loved, truly,” Hiccup said, sarcastically fanning a hand to his face. “This is all so flattering, to be fought over by two suitors. How will I ever choose?”

“You won’t have to,” Jack says, jumping up from the couch with a flourish and into a battle stance, waving the fork from the bowl like a sword, “for our duel will decide our fate! What say you, crone?”

“I say we duke it out over beer pong at the house party Ian’s throwing at his place tonight,” grinned Merida, brandishing the bendy straw from her now empty juice box. “What say you, wench?”

“I say I’d rather kick your ass over Call of Duty again,” Jack said, placing the fork in the sink.

“Aw, come on Jack, don’t quit on me already!”

“Yeah, what happened to fighting for my love?” Hiccup smirked, standing up to clean his bowl.

“Last time we played that game I woke up without my hoodie-,”

“Because you threw up all over it,” Merida pointed out.

“-on the bathroom floor-,”

“We gave you a pillow and blanket.”

“Hiccup could’ve carried me to my bed!”

“Hey, my leg was already fucked up at that point from dragging your ass up here. You’re lucky I didn’t just leave you in the car.”

“Oh because you were drinking so much that night.”

“Yes Jack, I was!”

“But you still decided to drive us home, tsk tsk.”

“Oh please, you’re lucky I even stopped and sobered up once I saw you chugging down all that beer. I wasn’t even supposed to drive that night, but you just had to sulk a-,”

Immediately Jack tensed up. Evidently Hiccup was still a bit sore from the mom comment. He didn’t care. He wasn’t in the mood. Especially when that particular night he was also still sore over.

“Don’t fucking go there-,”

“I wouldn’t have to if you’d just-,”

“Okay, that’s enough!” Merida interrupted, throwing her hands up. Jack wasn’t the aggressive type, but if looks could kill, his glare was sending the message. Hiccup crossed his arms, shifting his gaze to somewhere off to the side.

Shooting a stern glare over to Hiccup, and then turning calmly over to Jack, she said, “We can fight over Hiccup’s love another time. This semester has been hard, and between my anatomy, Hiccup’s calculus, and your chemistry, I think a party would be a great way to help us all bond and loosen up. Doesn’t that sound nice?”

Jack continued to glare at Hiccup, though he felt his jaw growing less tense than the minute before. Hiccup let out a sigh, uncrossing his arms and moving them into the pockets of his sweatpants.

“Sure,” he said with a shrug, “but I get to drink this time.”

“Fair enough. Jack?” Merida turned to him, eyeing him carefully. “Wanna keep us out of trouble tonight?”

He hesitated for a moment, before letting out a playfully dramatic groan. “Fine. I guess. Since I have nothing better to do.”

“Aw, don’t be a buzzkill Frost. I hear Ian’s older brother has it in for those hippie craft beers. Should be extra strong since he’s into potion making.”

“Potion making? What is it, is he lacing the drinks or something?” Hiccup asked with raised eyebrows, ever the skeptic.

“Nah, that’s just what he likes calling his mixed drinks. I checked them out on his Insta, they look pretty good.”

“Better bring a bottle with me so I can save some for later then.”

“Kinda risky of Ian to be throwing a house party with his step dad being a cop though, don’t you think?” said Hiccup.

“Oh, I’m sure they’re out of town or something,” said Merida, waving her hand. “Would be pretty ballsy of him to do it if they weren’t though. So you’ll be our token sober friend for tonight then?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Jack said, rolling his eyes, “But I’m leaving you guys if you think I’m gonna try to pry you off of each other.”

Merida shot him a wink as she walked over to her boyfriend, moving his hands over to her stomach. “I’ll keep that in mind when we’re coming up for a name for our little mistake.”

“Oh my god, Merida,” Hiccup said, covering his blushing face with his hands.

Jack laughed along with her, but he couldn’t help but feel a twinge in his chest at the joke.


	2. Ch 2 - Eavesdropping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merida talking it out with the boys, separately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do have a rough outline for this fanfic, so don't worry, I won't keep you guys waiting too long. That being said, these chapters will only probably update every 1-2 months, depending on how busy college gets. But I do plan on finishing this one. I owe it to my middle school self to properly finish a Jackunzel fan fiction.

They had some time to kill, the party wasn’t until nine anyway. Jack had spent the better part of an hour haphazardly throwing all his clothes into his carry on. Hiccup was nice enough to lend him the last of his boxes for any more miscellaneous items: books, shoes, his beddings and pillow. He debated taking the hangers the last person left behind in the closet for himself, but ultimately decided to pay the deed forward to the next student. Besides, North would probably be fine if he asked for some. He might even craft them himself, now that Jack thought about it.

As he slipped off the various hoodies, jackets, and shirts from their hangers, he caught a glimpse of it. The painting. Propped up perfectly for his viewing displeasure. He nearly threw it out over the summer if it wasn’t for Tooth convincing him not to. Lugging it back with him at the start of their second year, though. That was entirely on him. Him and his questionable logic. Even Tooth, he recalled, looked confused at the decision, though she was nice enough to never actually say anything.

And there it sat, in the back of his dorm closet. He had regretted bringing it with him the second he had settled everything else in his room. With nowhere else to place it, Jack had shoved it in the back behind all his clothes and ignored it ever since.

Now he was faced with it. As much as it hurt to look, he was never not impressed with the artistry of it all, and of the artist who lovingly made it. Even with the layer of dust that had been collecting since last fall, the streaks of platinum and golden hair still shined through. Blue eyes meet green, with an earnestness so true painted in them that he swore she was looking at him again.

But she wasn’t. And at this rate, Jack didn’t think she ever would.

As he walked toward the door to check if Hiccup had any parchment paper to cover it with, he caught his name being mentioned.

“Nothing happened, Meri.”

“You really expect me to believe that? After knowing you two for five years now, you think I’m that daft?”

“I was just,” Hiccup stopped, then gave an exasperated sigh, “I was just trying to help him.”

“How, exactly?”

“I was trying to talk to him about picking a major.”

“He said he was doing business wasn’t he?”

“Well he hasn’t declared it yet. But even if he did, it’d be a load of bull.”

“Maybe, but that’s not for you to decide.”

“But he hasn’t decided anything! That’s the problem! Why are you even siding with him?”

“Don’t go there, Hiccup. You know I’m not.”

At this point Jack had sat down, careful not to brush up against the slightly opened door. The whispers were making it a bit difficult to eavesdrop, and he considered risking it by nudging the door a bit further to hear.

“Well you’re not exactly pushing him either.”

“What else do you expect us to do? We can’t force him to get over all of that.”

“But that doesn’t mean we can just let him sulk his life away!” A creak of the couch. Hiccup was pacing around now, a habit of his when he was trying to think through a problem.

“Don’t you think it’s a little pathetic?”

“Obviously.” Ouch. He didn’t blame Merida for it, but he had hoped she’d at least hesitate a bit before answering. “Like I said, we can’t make him do anything if he doesn’t want to. With everything that went on after graduation, then the break up on top of it… I don’t know. It must’ve been a lot. Even if they did get back together, I doubt it would help much.”

Jack closed his eyes and tilted his head back against the wall, breathing in a heavy sigh. He hadn’t been thinking about that. If anything, he actively avoided it. He hated thinking about it, about that man. Not that there was much to think of, or miss. His dad had left, simple as that. It was the one thing he ever did for Jack. Though to be fair, he did manage to do it twice. He at least had that going for him.

“ _So I’m keeping score now, huh,_ ” he thought. A _Who Left Jack the Most_ gameshow. He smirked a little at the idea, considering the potential contestants, though really he could only think of two. He’d never count it against his mom and sister for leaving. It’s not their fault the road was so slippery that night. If anything, he should have left with them, or at the very least been the one to leave with mom. If only he’d claim shotgun in time.

“Did you ever talk to Rapunzel about it?” Hiccup asked.

“I figured you’d have, being friends since middle school and all.”

He was quiet for a moment, and suddenly the pacing footsteps stopped. “I did once, over FaceTime. It was when I was helping you unpack everything at the beginning of the year and you gave me your phone to go to the bathroom real quick. I felt bad asking. She got quiet and had this really sad look on her face. I guess she never mentioned it.”

“No, but now I’m really thinking you’re being too pushy on this.”

Jack’s chest tightened at the info. He had assumed that they’d have to have known what happened in their break up to be acting like this. All this talk about how he was wasting his life, and it wasn’t even because they were blaming him for anything. It churned his stomach thinking about it, as Jack realized that they were potentially thinking it was Rapunzel’s fault in all this. Thoughts of her crying to herself in a room all the way in Germany, the image of her blotchy red face the day she left, it had haunted him for up to a year now. Knowing that no one else knew, not Merida, not Hiccup, not even her parents. Even the possibility of Rapunzel ranting to her international family in German would make him feel better. He doubted it though, and it made the idea all the more heavier.

Before he could let himself think any deeper on it, Jack shook his head and focused back on the conversation. He seemed to have spaced out for too long, however. The living room was quiet, and no more footsteps could be heard.

He stood up to open the door and tried to muster up a sort of half-grin. If he wanted any hope of being left alone, he had to look the part. Stepping out of his room, he realized he didn’t have to worry at all. Hiccup had gone, leaving Merida to lounge on the couch alone with her phone. Perfect. She was still as intuitive as Hiccup when it came to feelings, but at the very least, she knew when to leave things be. Something Jack had always appreciated since they were kids.

“Where’s brain boy gone off to?” he asked, walking over to the couch.

“Oh, he’s just getting a shower in before we head out,” Merida said, offering him a tight smile. “How was packing?”

“Fine.” Jack hesitated, his friend instincts getting the better of him, “Are you guys okay?”

“What makes you say that?”

“You’re sucking in your lips. You only do that when you’re holding something back.”

“For fucks sake, Jack,” Merida groaned, throwing herself back against the couch. “All I wanted to do was get piss drunk at a party. What is with you guys today and having to observe everything.”

“Okay! Okay, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have,” he said, throwing up his hands in defense. Merida smacked his arm lightly, but otherwise said nothing. After a moment, he glanced over to her again. “Thanks for defending me earlier.”

She sighed, closing her eyes. “You just needed to calm down. Both of you. That’s all.” 

Jack nodded, staring at the floor. “I need a quick favor though.”

“Hm?”

“Some parchment paper. To wrap up the painting in.”

Merida turned her head to this, frowning at him. “You know we’re worried about you Jack. Both of us.”

“I know.”

“ _Say it. Say I’m pathetic,”_ he thought, but she didn’t. She only squinted, her blue eyes peering at him intently. When they were younger she wouldn’t even have hesitated, but as they grew Merida had learned when tact was needed, and when bluntness was necessary. Jack just wished this was one of those blunt moments.

“I don’t think we have any parchment paper left, but you could always use a bed sheet,” she said after a minute. “It should work better, since they’re fitted. The painting’s around the same size as a twin mattress isn’t it?”

“A little smaller, but yeah.”

“Do you need help wrapping it?”

“I don’t even want to look at it to be honest.”

Merida rolled her eyes but got up anyway. “Where is it?”

“The painting’s in the closet, the bed sheet should be in the box. I think there might be some string in there too, but I don’t know how long it is,” Jack said, standing up to follow her. “You’re the best.”

“Obviously,” Merida said, already pulling out the painting with bed sheet in hand. “Do you wanna go out to eat before the party or are you fine with whatever snacks they have there?”

“I think we should bring a pizza to be nice. But you guys should definitely eat chicken wings or something before we get there.”

“Sounds good. I think Hiccup still has that coupon to CiCi’s from the raffle he won last month.”

“Am I driving your car or Hiccup’s?”

“Hiccup’s, I dropped my car off back at home last week when I went to visit. Figured I’d finish my packing early.”

“Wow, and you didn’t even bring me some of your mom’s haggis?” Jack smiled, clutching at his chest. “I thought we were friends.”

“Oh please, we all know you hate it as much as we do,” Merida said, elbowing him as she secured the sheets with twine.

“Yeah, but if eating it means I’m still Elinor’s favorite, I’ll take it.”

Merida laughed, finishing off wrapping up the painting. They had talks like this all the time, even more so this school year when Hiccup disappeared into his books and co-curriculars. They weren’t always profound, but the familiarity was a comfort to Jack. He always appreciated them. It was one of the few things that made him think of his childhood without feeling sad. 

He wondered why he couldn’t be happy like this. With Hiccup pushing him and Merida bringing him back, it seemed like the perfect middle ground of existence. But like Merida said, having Rapunzel back didn’t look like it would change anything, and Jack hated thinking of unloading anymore on her. It was something he had to make peace with himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter specifically to kill the trope of eavesdropping only to leave the second they get offended because omfg I hate it so much. If you're gonna snoop then surrender your feelings.

**Author's Note:**

> A very dialogue heavy chapter. I actually used to really hate writing dialogue but for some reason it came very easily to me this time. Though to be honest I just tried to think about how I usually talk to my friends. And it's just really nice to be able to write friends being comfy around each other. Jack still has to work through the healthy communicating part though ;(


End file.
